Apple News (MacOS)

What This Skill Does

The Apple News (MacOS) skill provides a robust, deterministic interface for interacting with the native Apple News application on macOS. It allows the OpenClaw agent to launch the application, navigate to specific articles via Apple News deep links (apple.news), and execute repeatable news-reading workflows through system-level command execution. By leveraging a structured memory system, the skill tracks your preferred command-paths (such as open, osascript, or shortcuts), ensures safe link-opening protocols, and maintains logs of all performed operations for transparency and troubleshooting.

Installation

To install this skill, use the OpenClaw CLI: clawhub install openclaw/skills/skills/ivangdavila/apple-news. Upon installation, initialize your workspace by following the setup.md guide. This includes establishing your command-path preferences and defining your search fallback strategies. All operational data is kept locally in the ~/apple-news/ directory, adhering to a modular memory structure that ensures your reading history and automation patterns remain organized and accessible for the agent.

Use Cases

• Automated Morning Briefing: Configure a shortcut to open your saved feeds or specific categories, and have the agent launch them as part of your startup sequence.
• Link Management: When browsing, send an Apple News link to the agent to immediately surface the content within the native application rather than the web browser.
• Topic Research: Utilize the search fallback mechanism to search for specific news topics or recurring interests when a direct URL is not available.
• Workflow Auditing: Review operation-log.md to track which articles have been opened and ensure that automated reading lists are executing as expected.

Example Prompts

1. "Open the Apple News article at https://apple.news/ABC123XYZ and make sure it is active."
2. "Launch my morning news briefing workflow using the configured shortcuts."
3. "Search for the latest headlines on global climate change and open the first three articles."

Tips & Limitations

• Safety First: The agent is designed to be cautious. Always confirm large batches of links before they open. The skill includes a mandatory safety check for multiple concurrent requests to prevent system clutter.
• Path Integrity: Always use the absolute path /System/Applications/News.app for maximum reliability, as relative shortcuts can fail depending on system localization.
• Troubleshooting: If an operation fails, consult troubleshooting.md in your local directory. The agent is trained to revert to safer command patterns if an advanced path command fails to yield the desired window state.